Shogun Road converted to 7speed Hack

Hi, finished my winter build today. It was originally a Shogun Comp frame circa 1995 bought for £69 from Hilary Stone. Cheap as chips.

Frame is aluminium and 16 years old so the welds are ugly as you’d expect but I wanted to make something aesthetically pleasing, fast, but ultimately not too expensive.

pretty ugly but new I could make a decent hack and also put a pannier rack on for biking trips if needed even though it didn't have too long a wheelbase. Didn't go pannier route in the end but the option's there.

***Armourtex ***

Went for sparkle silver and got the crank arms of my triple chainset the same colour.

Double / Triple Chainset to Single Conversion.

The Other thing I discovered on this build was how to convert a double or triple chainset to a single if you have to do so on a budget (and don’t want to just buy smaller bolts). If pennies are all you’ve got a spring washer from a hardware store will enable you to remove the second ring and secure the primary to the cranks safely. Chain line may or may not be an issue. For me it wasn’t. In the end however I couldn’t resist a bit of bling and went for a dura-ace 56t TT ring and with some FSA cranks of ebay. I think the build is better for it.

If your braze on is the old style with small rivets then you wont be able to just screw bolts back in after removal. The holes left over are also too small for plastic or metal blanks from harware stores. As they can be as in this case just 2 – 3mm in size.

What I did was to buy some stainless steel grub screws. Insert them part way with an allen key and then file them down to make a stainless steel plug / blank.

Unfortunately, I only worked this out post Armourtex so I couldn’t get them flush. If you got them flush pre powder coating this would be a great solution to the holes left by old style braze on removal .

My summer bike is a white TT frame, set up as a 7 speed, with a flat bar, single brake and sigle shifter. I’ve ridden it for just under a year now and have no problem with a single front brake on a free wheel. You just set it up to the point when full engagement (emergency stop) doesn’t lift up the back wheel.

Once it’s a known / given distance you ride accordingly. If it’s raining a couple of full engagements on clear road and a quick adjustment while riding lets me know my braking distance.

As I’ve enjoyed the TT build I replicated the core elements on this build. The builds are so that I can just swap wheels between them and just ride.

However, I was dissapointed by the look of the front end. The forks weren't as aggressive as I'd have liked.

Custom Forks

I wanted straight forks to replicate my summer bike but carbon would have been against the feel of the build. So I got some forks custom made in Taiwan. The delay in them getting here is why my “winter” bike is only ready for spring.

Saddle / Bar / Brake lever

Chainset Upgrade

Almost Finished + 105 Brake

Some in-between pics and text are missing as I'm typing this finshed section. I wont repost as moderator may insert later.

However, here is the finished build - hoping the other stuff will appear soon. Cheers for looking.

looks like good

would be an awesome polo bike

seems to fast for only a front brake...

Approved. I still want one of those DA chainrings.

seems to fast for only a front brake...

that doesnt make sense to me. The front brake will stop you just fine..

I prefer 2 ways of stopping on my bikes. Preferably 2 mechanical ways of stopping. a brake and my legs, 2 brakes, etc.

But each to their own.

Two ways of stopping:

1. Front brake
   
2. Large metal object such as car, bus, truck..
   

I was going to say

1) front brake
2) your face

but I didn't want to be inflammatory. :)

I like inflammatory.

gears all ways need two brakes, incase one dies.
Also who made the forks for you? and how much did they cost? if you dont mind me asking that is.

Have fun trying to stop on a patch of ice/diesel with only a front brake.

Hi Spotter, sorry for delay been at work, then out and about with the missus.

The forks were made by Wuler in Taiwan. It was a drawn out process but the end product was worth it. Once you look around at their catalogue you'll see vthey do alot of OEM stuff for brands you'll know. If you need a direct contact PM me and I'll give you a direct email.

Spotter, re those forks... I've friend in Leeds with a pair very similar, they are 1 inch and uncut. Think they're going spare if you want me to find out?

cheers chaps, i'm in no need of forks i was just wondering about where they were made, should i need to know for the future.

Hi Lae, don't want an arguement but I have riden a 7 speed TT for a year with only a front brake 48 x 11 no problems at all.

There are so many scaremongers out there, but the fact is if you've ever gone over the top using your front brake you've had it set up wrong - it's your error.

It's the kind of misconception/fear that a free wheel rider feels when riding fixed for the first time and not understanding the feedback the bike is giving them.

There's two facts 1) set up right the front brake wont send you over the top and 2) set up right it won't skid or fishtail making you loose control like a rear brake can and will.

As a result you get a shorter more stable stopping distance with your front brake.

I'm a no body but if you're interested sheldon brown touched on the benefits of learning correct front brake use and was the source with that made me try to learn how to use my front brake properly. Once I did I never looked back.

The info is at http://sheldonbrown.com/brakturn.html if it's of use to you great, if not ride the way you feel comfortable with. I'm happy if your happy.

From my side it works and it's safe. I put a bit of effort in and I've got a new skill set as well as new options when it comes to building bike(s) for me.

Cheers, all the best, Glen

In depth response Glen, still completely missed the point.

bit pissed been out with the missus. what did i miss?

Even if you do 75% of braking with your front brake, a rear brake is also very useful. Such as when hitting a corner too quick, using the back brake will allow you to scrub speed whilst taking the corner tighter, using the front will cause the bike to become unstable. Also riskier in the wet.... Then there's the argument for what if the cable snaps? I've had this happen and it was scary... luckily it was on a fixed bike so I managed not to end up in a bus. I have been riding fixed brakeless since this incident so don't want to come across as a hippocrit, I also have a mtb running just a back... But I would never run a bike like yours with just the one brake, what's the point? Aesthetics? Weight saving? neither make sense.

I don't usually get drawn into these debates but you sound quite convinced there is nothing wrong with a 1 brake set up, I just can't see any advantage over having 2 brakes.

Good points, well made but the Idea of a cable snapping seems like bad luck. If you set up correctly and don't prioritise money saving over safety and good components it won't happen.

All I can do is ride defensively and hope the gods are with me. If the tension in a front brake is sufficient to snap a decent cable then you have to be really unlucky.

It's not a step I took lightly. I researched rode with it, repected it, built one bike and found it effective enough to do another build on that basis. It could be wrong for you but it does work. No worries though.

Snow, Ice and diesel and I'm a goner can't argue with that (but 2 brakes may yeild the same result) but rain hail and sleet have been negotiated with no probs.

don't want to come across as a hippocrit

Too early to find funny hippo image response.

This bike look great. The only thing I'd consider is a wider range block for town riding. I ride a 52 x 12-28. I'm sure its fine as is, but it's nice to be easy on my knees when taking off.

I always run a back brake as it lets me control weight distribution when slowing into corners, and can let me force a very slight oversteer by using the rear brake. Front brakes aren't much fun when you need to brake while leaning and cornering.